THE CRUEL TOWER (1956)

Tom is a studly young hobo who, while riding the rails, gets beaten up and tossed off a train car. He is found by Joss, a developmentally disabled steeplejack (someone who works on towers, smokestacks and other tall structures), who takes him back to the trailer office of his employer, Stretch Clay. Co-worker Casey and Stretch's secretary Mary help Tom recover and Stretch offers him a job. Tom is afraid of heights, but Stretch tells him his duties will keep him on the ground so he accepts, though Joss hints to Tom that he should leave before evil influences from Stretch get to him. The men are rather informal about safety measures, and Stretch is known to occasionally have a few drinks before going up the water tower they're working on. We soon learn some backstory. Mary is Stretch's mistress, but Stretch has a wife whom Joss accuses him of mistreating. Stretch is also not above a casual fling with other women. Tom's fear of heights comes from an incident in his past when he couldn't save his brother from falling off a cliff to his death. The men also have sabotage problems stemming from their rivalry with Forrest and his men, though eventually, Stretch hires Rocky, a former Forrest worker. With Mary's help, Tom begins to work on the towers, but when Joss lets it slip that Casey is having an affair with Stretch's wife, things begin to fall apart for the group, and when Tom and Mary decide to leave together, Stretch tries to stop them with tragic results. This is a solid B-movie with decent acting, good location shooting at real California towers, and some nice stunt work. The tensions between the characters are sustained throughout, and at eighty minutes, the film is just about the right length. The handsome John Ericson carries the movie well as Tom, and he and Mari Blanchard (Mary) work up some good chemistry. Charles McGraw, who played tough cops and tough thugs, is good as Stretch; though we know from early on that he'll be trouble, he manages to garner some sympathy along the way until his plans lead to the death of a character. Steve Brodie (Casey) and Peter Whitney (Joss) give fine support, as does Alan Hale Jr. in the smaller role of Rocky. There's a couple of bar brawls and the climax, played out at the top of a tower, is predictable but worth sticking around for. Pictured are Ericson and Blanchard. [YouTube]